In a move that has not occurred in almost 160 years, the California Legislature voted Monday night to recess their respective bodies until Monday, April 13, 2020, due to COVID-19. Acknowledging the seriousness of the crisis, President pro Tempore Toni Atkins said “…even though we may not physically be in the Capitol, we will continue…
Read More »On Monday, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Marko Mijic as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services. Mr. Mijic was appointed in May of 2019 and served in an acting capacity since 2018. Last month, the Senate Rules Committee voted to unanimously move his confirmation to the Senate floor for consideration. The senate voted…
Read More »Last Friday, March 6, 2020, the CHEAC Legislative Committee met for its second in-person meeting in Sacramento to review and discuss the remaining batch of newly introduced bills in the second part of the 2019-20 Legislative Session. During the meeting, the CHEAC Legislative Committee identified an additional 35 legislative bills of interest to local health…
Read More »On Tuesday, the Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee, Joint Legislative Audit Committee, Assembly Health Committee, Senate Environmental Quality Committee, and the Senate Health Committee convened a joint legislative oversight hearing on childhood lead levels following a report from the California State Auditor. Recall, the State Auditor’s report, “Childhood Lead Levels: Millions of Children…
Read More »With the February 21 bill introduction deadline past us, the California Legislature has begun scheduling its bill hearings in policy committees over the coming weeks. The CHEAC Legislative Committee is meeting again today in-person in Sacramento to review legislative measures of interest to local health departments and public health. Bills on which positions are taken…
Read More »Last Friday was the deadline for new legislative bills to be introduced for 2020. To date, the Legislature has introduced over 2,200 measures in both houses. CHEAC’s Legislative Committee also convened on February 21 to review the first batch of bills of interest to local health departments. The Committee will meet again on Friday, March…
Read More »Earlier this week, the Senate Rules Committee convened to review the appointment of Marko Mijic, for his role as Deputy Secretary, Program and Fiscal Affairs, for the California Health and Human Services Agency. Mr. Mijic in his opening remarks noted that he came to the United States 22 years earlier as a refugee with his…
Read More »On Wednesday, the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 3 on Health and Human Services and the Senate Health Committee convened a joint hearing to discuss oversight and accountability of Medi-Cal managed care plans and new responsibilities for health plans included in CalAIM. Dr. Bradley Gilbert began serving as director of the Department of…
Read More »A number of CHEAC members recently descended upon the State Capitol to educate members of the Legislature and their staff on the role and value of local health departments in Sacramento. This year’s event was an expansion of CHEAC’s first Legislative Member Education Day held in 2019 with 29 members representing 19 local health departments,…
Read More »On Tuesday, the Assembly Select Committee on Infectious Diseases, chaired by Assembly Member Mike Gipson, convened an informational hearing focused on the HIV, HCV, and STD epidemics in California. The hearing featured three key panels, the first providing an overview of the diseases in California, the second highlighting challenges in addressing them, and the third…
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